In a startling revelation, banks across Jharkhand are currently holding a massive Rs 1,490 crore in unclaimed deposits that rightfully belongs to millions of account holders who have either forgotten about their funds or whose heirs remain unaware of these financial assets.
The Scale of Unclaimed Wealth
According to official bank sources, the staggering amount involves 38,14,579 account holders across the state, creating one of the largest pools of unclaimed money in the region. The situation has prompted banking authorities to launch an extensive recovery drive to reunite people with their forgotten funds.
The distribution of these unclaimed deposits varies significantly across districts, with Ranchi emerging as the area with the highest amount at Rs 269.34 crore. Other districts with substantial unclaimed funds include Dhanbad with Rs 167.38 crore, East Singhbhum with Rs 138.13 crore, West Singhbhum with Rs 100 crore, and Bokaro with Rs 93.54 crore.
Bank-Wise Breakdown of Unclaimed Deposits
When examining which banks hold the largest portions of these unclaimed funds, the State Bank of India leads with Rs 530.96 crore in dormant accounts. Following SBI are Bank of India with Rs 408.83 crore, Punjab National Bank with Rs 122.14 crore, Jharkhand Gramin Bank with Rs 105.49 crore, and Indian Bank with Rs 103.48 crore in unclaimed deposits.
This widespread distribution across multiple banking institutions indicates that the issue of unclaimed money is not limited to any particular bank but represents a systemic challenge affecting the entire banking sector in Jharkhand.
The Recovery Drive: Bringing Money Back to Rightful Owners
Banking authorities have initiated a six-phase recovery drive that began in October and will continue until December. This comprehensive campaign employs multiple strategies to locate account holders or their legal heirs.
Amit Kumar, the manager of the lead bank in Dhanbad, explained their approach: "We are organizing special programs that bring all stakeholders onto a single platform to facilitate the identification and verification process. The response to our campaign has been encouraging so far."
Banks have adopted visible awareness measures including posters and pamphlets displayed prominently at branches to inform the public about the ongoing initiative. Additionally, banking officials are conducting meetings with public representatives, requesting them to leverage their extensive community contacts to spread awareness about the recovery drive.
Digital Solution: RBI's Udgam Portal
Complementing the physical recovery drive, the Reserve Bank of India operates the Udgam portal, which provides a digital platform for people to check if they have any unclaimed deposits across multiple banks. Individuals can fill out forms on the portal to verify their eligibility and initiate the withdrawal process following established banking protocols.
This dual approach of ground-level campaigns combined with digital accessibility aims to maximize the recovery of unclaimed funds before they become permanently dormant. The banking community remains optimistic that their concerted efforts will successfully return significant portions of the Rs 1,490 crore to their rightful owners by the conclusion of the special drive in December.
